The stylist arrives right on time. She brings in a rack of clothes for Sienna to choose from. The makeup and hair people come soon after. Sienna and I have come up with a plan to remedy the situation and she'll need to look perfect.

Maybe it's an excuse to spoil her a little. She's been through so much and she's been quite a trooper having her life turned upside down and dealing with her brother. I want to take the heaviness away from her and put it on my own shoulders for just a while. I can bear the brunt of gossip and bad news, she, however, doesn’t deserve it. 

She comes out of the shower, hair wet and wearing my robe. 

"What is this? Leo?" Her eyes light up, and I fucking love it. I want to be the one to put that look on her face every single day.

"I've ordered it all for you. I want you to just relax and let yourself be pampered."

She kisses me on the cheek. "Thank you."

She's always grateful for even the smallest things and that makes me want to spoil her even more. 

"You deserve some respite." I pour her a glass of wine to get the evening started. "Here, we might as well make this fun."

"Yes! Have a glass with me?"

"I'll have whiskey."

I pour myself some in a crystal tumbler. Then I leave her to enjoy all the fun that comes with having a glam squad.

"I'll let you enjoy it without any distractions."

"Okay." She’s already rifling through the rack of clothes with happiness. 

Well, at least something's been able to put a smile on her face.

I finish my drink and go to take a shower and by the time I come out, Sienna's squad is putting the final touches on her makeup. 

"You look...amazing."

"Just wait until you see her dress," the stylist says as she holds up a tiny black silky thing.

"Plus, there are sky-high heels," Sienna says with delight.

My eyes grow ravenous as I take her in. It's hard not to want to fuck her day and night. I feel like taking her perfectly polished appearance and fucking her until she’s in complete disarray. I feel like sending these people away and tossing her over my shoulder so that I can have my way with her in the bedroom.

She looks at me and sees what I'm thinking. Is my desire that obvious?

"No, Leo,” she says with a smile, though I see the heat in her eyes and her unwillingness to leave yet too. “We don't have time."

She read my mind.

"But later we will.” She says it like a promise. “And I guess that means we have all night to think about it."

The sexual tension is thick, and I'm happy to say we've made the glam squad suitably uncomfortable. They finish up quickly and pack away their things. There are kisses on the cheek and thank yous before they depart. Sienna has likely made fast friends of the squad and I imagine they'll be around more often. At least as long as she’s here with me.

I pull her close and kiss her. She leans back, her eyes wide.

"No, babe! My lipstick."

She doesn't leave me hanging, though, because she unties her robe and lets it fall to the floor. All she's wearing is a black lace bra and thong. She does a little spin, causing my cock to twitch, straining against my pants to get to her.

"Now help me get into the dress."

"No problem." My voice comes out thick, and I have to swallow hard and clear my throat. Fuck, this woman drives me crazy. Typically by this point, I’d be tired of a woman. Bored. But with Sienna I seem to want her more every day. It’s becoming an insatiable desire.

I hold the skimpy little dress up and try to determine front from back. She's laughing at me now as I fumble with the fabric.

"Give it to me,” she says, snatching it away.

She slides it over her head, and her lingerie sadly disappears, but the tight fabric of the dress hugs every curve just right so that my imagination doesn’t have to venture far.

"You ready for this?" I ask as I take her arm and lead her downstairs.

"Yes. But it's going to be pretty hard to hate you."

Breaking up is part of our plan.

"Well, you didn't seem to have any problem with it before," I jest.

"That's when things were different." Her voice is soft this time. There’s no anger there.

But I don't probe her more. I’m still uncertain about how to deal with what’s going on between us.

We go downstairs and into the Inner Sanctum. Our plan is to continue making it look like she's an escort so that we can possibly get a handle on who the informant is working for. The easiest way to kill the target is to go right for the hornet's nest.

Again, we walk through the casino, and there's a hushed silence despite all the chaos of slot machines going and tourists everywhere laughing and drinking. Our names have been splashed all over the media, and all eyes are on us, which is just the way we need it to be.

I lead her to the high roller tables and we begin gambling. We're pretending not to notice that people are watching our every move. Little do they know that a soap opera's about to be played out for their entertainment needs.

We act like the happy couple at first. I'm kissing her and smiling. We're ordering drinks and laughing as we play blackjack, poker, and roulette.

I whisper in her ear as we plan our dramatic scene.

"Do you think it's time?" I inhale her perfume as I say the words. 

My cock is throbbing, and I want to take her into a side room and fuck her brains out before the drama begins. I can't take my hands off of her. And she's happy to be wanted. She's flirting with me and I hate that we'll have to separate for even a moment before I ravage her tonight.

"I guess it can be time. But I'm having so much fun."

"I know. But the sooner this is over, the closer we'll be to freedom."

"Okay." She nods, and her eyes are wide, and I know she regrets as much as I do what has to be done.

"Alright, I'll start. Just remember that whatever I say, I don't mean." I feel like I need to give her fair warning after the harsh things I said to her when we first saw each other again.

I start to argue with her, loudly enough so that people in the immediate vicinity can hear.

"You little slut, are you telling me you want to break our agreement?"

She stands up and pours a glass of water all over my suit.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. You're an asshole and I wouldn't dream of spending a single moment more with you."

She turns to stalk out but I grab her arm. People are definitely looking but we stay true to our roles. It's the only way to put an end to this blackmail.

"You're not going anywhere," I say as a small crowd forms. "I paid a hundred thousand dollars for a month with you, and I expect you to make good on that arrangement. Otherwise, I'll call your boss and have you fired."

She turns around with viciousness in her eyes. "You wouldn't dare."

"I would," I say, confident like I always am, but with obvious anger in my voice.

"Fine. Call him. I don't give a damn. I just want to be away from you forever."

She storms out, and I know she's on her way back up to my penthouse through the private entrance like we agreed upon beforehand.

The crowd eventually scatters, and I make sure to stay awhile longer to flesh out the scene.

I act broody over my scotch, and in truth I am broody.

I still haven't told Sienna about my true feelings, that I've loved her from the moment I first laid eyes on her.

She still doesn't know that it was her brother Jax who kept us apart. She has no idea about his threatening nature and about how overprotective he is. I don't have to act the part of a crestfallen man because that's the way I truly feel. I don’t know how to get past all of that and to the point where we can be together.

I stay at the luxe lounge for two more drinks and then make my very public walk to the penthouse elevator. Everyone who didn't witness our breakup knows about it now. The news has traveled like wildfire. My phone is pinging as concerned friends hear of the news. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s trending on social media. We probably have our own fucking hashtag.

I go into the elevator and loosen my tie. I'm ready to be with Sienna without pretenses and without the charade. I want things to work out between us. I know this now. I'm ready to just be and to stop pretending.

A little while more, I tell myself. At least it's guaranteed that she'll be with me for a few more days yet, until we have this under control.

I go inside the penthouse and can't wait to find her. She's waiting for me by the window and we both burst out laughing at our pretend fight.

"You did really good down there," she says. "I'd hate to break up with you for real."

"Yes," I agree. "My suit is still wet. You didn't tell me you were going to do that."

She grins "Oh well, when the bartender delivered that water, I thought it'd be a nice touch."

Her eyes are mischievous. "Hey, at least it wasn't wine."

"Is that so?"

Her playful mood deserves my full attention. I make sure the doors are locked and then I show her just how she’s going to pay for that splash of water.